It has been a decade since the government conceived a plan to shift Dhaka’s four inter-district bus terminals to new locations to ease traffic congestions in the capital city’s entrances, but it has made little headway since then. Dhaka, the national capital which is already under pressure of heavy infrastructures, suffers from more traffic congestion than anywhere else in Bangladesh as most of its bus stops and terminals are located in its heart. In a city like Dhaka, bus terminals have to handle huge passenger transfers every day without offering any facility that can ensure the safety and comfort of passengers. According to experts, there are huge advantages in relocating terminals to areas away from the city centre with multimodal connectivity taking those closer to the under-construction metro-rail system which could speed up both trips and ensure passenger safety. A report on the feasibility of the much-sought plan to relocate the four bus terminals will take at least another three months to be finalized though there have been a few visits by the city mayors and government officials to the proposed sites. READ: Homebound people flock at launch and bus terminals dreading ‘lockdown’ The Dhaka Transport Coordination Authority (DTCA) will look after the relocation of four inter-district bus terminals at Gabtoli Mohakhali, Sayedabad and Fulbaria. Though the government had taken the plan in 2010, the work is yet to start for unknown reasons, sources at DTCA said. At least 8,000 buses that run daily between the capital city and other districts use the four terminals. Since they are now inside the city, traffic congestions even during the night are common. According to the decision, the Gabtoli terminal will be shifted to Savar, Mohakhali terminal to Tongi in Gazipur, Sayedabad terminal to Kanchpur and Fulbaria and Babubazar terminals to Keraniganj. On completion of relocation of the four bus-terminals, new intra-city bus terminals will be established at Gabtoli, Mohakhali, Sayedabad, Fulbaria, Mirpur Section-12, Basila of Mohammadpur and Sadarghat for the buses plying on the city streets. Additional Executive Director (AED) of the DTCA Engineer Rabiul Islam told UNB that the technical committee of the DTCA has proposed at least 10 sites for building new terminals and bus depots as part of the much-talked-about bus route rationalisation move. READ: 200 transport workers facing shutdown miseries at Jashore bus terminal The proposed sites, which are located on the entry points of the capital, included Batulia, Hemayetpur, Madanpur, Baipail, Bhulta, Kanchpur, Teghoria and Boro Monohoria of Keraniganj, Gazipur Chowrasta and Jhilmil. Mayors of Dhaka North City Corporation (DNCC) and Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC)-- Atiqul Islam and Barrister Sheikh Fazle Noor Taposh respectively have already visited four selected spots- Batulia at Uttara near metro depot, Hemayetpur of Savar, Teghoria of Keraniganj and Kanchpur—several months back. Sources at the DTCA said Batulia site has been selected for the buses, which will come from Tangail, Mymensingh, Sirajganj, Pabna, Bogura, Natore, Rajshahi. Kanchpur site was selected for inter-district buses coming from Chattogram, Feni, Noakhali, Cumilla, Khagrachhari, Rangamati, Bandarban and Cox's Bazar. Hemayetpur has been selected for the buses coming from Manikganj, Faridpur, Gopalganj, and some northern and southern districts and Teghoria is selected for the buses from Shariatpur, Madaripur and all the districts under Barishal division. Rabiul Islam said the feasibility study report (FSR) for the relocation of the enter-district bus terminals is almost finalized and is being scrutinizing by the concerned authorities. Replying to a question, he said it may take 2-3 more months to finalize the FSR. After completion of the FSR, the relocation of bus terminals would be implemented through an investment project, he said. READ: Corona scare: Railway stations, launch and bus terminals left deserted Sources at the DTCA said the first inter-district bus terminal was established at Fulbaria near Gulistan in 1984. Later, the three other inter-district bus terminals were established at Gabtoli, Sayedabad and Mohakhali due to the expansion of the capital.

Notwithstanding a drop in the number of fresh cases, the global Covid-19 tally surpassed 167 million on Tuesday. According to Johns Hopkins University, the total caseload and fatalities currently stand at 167,112,793 and 3,469,530. So far, 1,678,350,114 doses of vaccine have been administered across the world, the university has said. The US has been counting the highest number of Covid-19 cases and deaths since its outbreak. To date, the US has logged 33,141,158 cases and 590,516 deaths, as per the university data. Read: India COVID-19 tally rises to 26,530,132, daily deaths fall below 4,000 India crossed another grim milestone on Monday of more than 300,000 people lost to the coronavirus as a devastating surge of new infections that exploded with fury has shown signs of easing, reports AP. The country has registered 26,752,447 cases till Tuesday morning with 303,720 fatalities, according to the Indian Health Ministry. Brazil on Monday reported 790 more deaths from Covid-19 in 24 hours, raising the national count to 449,858, the Ministry of Health said. A total of 37,498 more infections were detected during the period, taking the nationwide tally to 16,120,756, the Ministry said. Brazil has the world's second-highest Covid-19 death toll, after the United States, and the third-largest caseload, following the United States and India. Situation in Bangladesh  Bangladesh on Monday recorded 25 more coronavirus-related deaths in 24 hours, raising the fatality figures to 12,401. The infection rate declined to 8.15 percent on Monday from Sunday’s 8.90 percent while the mortality rate remained unchanged at 1.57 percent, said a handout issued by the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS). Besides, 1,441 people were found infected with Covid-19 after testing 17,683 samples. With the fresh cases, the country’s coronavirus caseload reached 790,521, said the handout. Read:Covid-19: Bangladesh sees 25 more deaths, 1,441 new cases Bangladesh has so far tested 5,838,295 samples. The country reported its first coronavirus cases on March 8 last year and the first death on March 18, 2020. Lockdown extended The government has extended the ongoing lockdown by another week till May 30, but is allowing public buses to operate at half of their seating capacity. The Cabinet Division issued a circular in this regard on Sunday. Everyone will have to maintain health protocols like wearing masks, said the circular. Besides, hotels and restaurants will be allowed to keep open with half of their capacities. The authorities concerned have been asked to take necessary steps in this regard. In the wake of a rise in coronavirus cases post the second week of March, the government imposed a "loose" nationwide lockdown for one week from April 5. Later, a complete lockdown was announced from April 14 to 21. Inter-district public transport services resume Inter-district bus, train and launch services have resumed at half of their seating capacity, some 59 days after the suspension of public transport facilities amid the worsening Covid-19 situation. Twenty-eight pairs of intercity trains have resumed operations, maintaining health guidelines after around two months, according to Bangladesh Railway officials. Read:Inter-district public transport services finally back; passengers happy Train services were suspended on April 5 as part of the government’s restrictions on people’s movement to stem the coronavirus transmission. Inter-district buses started running from Sunday midnight, keeping up to 50 percent of their seats empty as per the government directives. The government earlier allowed buses to resume operations in city corporation areas from May 6. BIWTA Joint Director Gulzar said, “Launch services resumed from Sadarghat terminal around 6am."  

Passengers in Bangladesh heaved a sigh of relief as inter-district bus, train and launch services resumed at half of capacity on Monday, 59 days after the suspension amid the worsening Covid-19 situation in the country. The resumption of public transport services has also brought smiles to the faces of transport workers and their owners as they remained idle for about two months with many of them losing jobs during the period. Train services Twenty-eight pairs of intercity trains resumed their services at half of the capacity, maintaining health guidelines after around two months, said Bangladesh Railway officials. The train services in the country were suspended on April 5 as part of the government restrictions on people’s movement to stem the coronavirus transmission. Read: Train services to resume at half capacity from Monday The authorities concerned have been asked to keep half of the train seats vacant for ensuring social distance, said a handout issued by the Railways Ministry on Sunday.